Project description:Norovirus, a member of the Caliciviridae family, is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA (+ssRNA) virus and a leading cause of acute gastroenteritis worldwide, especially affecting young children and the elderly. Due to a lack of specific treatment, norovirus infection causes 200,000 deaths each year and imposes an economic burden exceeding $60 billion. To address this challenge and develop medicines and diagnostics, further research into norovirus reproduction is needed. Norovirus uses a nucleotidylated protein, known as VPg (viral protein genome-linked), to initiate genome replication, by acting as a replication primer. The genomic RNA of norovirus is linked by a phosphodiester bond between the 5’-terminal guanosine (norovirus) and the phenolic oxygen of a tyrosine residue (Y27 for norovirus). In this work we demonstrate the synthesis of peptides derived from guanylylated norovirus VPg and their use in proteomic studies of norovirus replication.
